Benefits of HBA Membership

We work with music regulators PPL and PRS For Music throughout the year to ensure equal representation for all hospital, health and wellbeing broadcasters when it comes to licensing. Our members also get a waiver from PRS For Music on their usual fees.

We allocate approximately £6,000 per year for stations as part of our grants and bursaries scheme. Many stations have used this scheme to purchase new equipment or refurbish entire studios.

Our Stakeholder Relationships team are working hard behind the scenes to represent our members across the UK. We continually provide feedback on Government consultations on behalf of our member stations, and we’re working closely with key figures in the NHS and local Governments to ensure hospital, health and wellbeing broadcasting is on the list.

Our experienced specialist advisors are on hand to help on a wide variety of topics ranging from charity law & governance, technical support, programming and fundraising.

We provide access to free publications to ensure our member stations and their volunteers and kept informed of what’s happening in the broadcasting and charity sector, respectively. You’ll have a choice of three newsletters to choose from to get news.

Available to all registered volunteers of HBA Member Stations, our monthly Zoom Socials allow a convenient time for the hospital, health and wellbeing volunteer community to gather together. These online Zoom meetings provide the opportunity to share ideas, best practice and experiences whilst addressing issues or concerns from other volunteers. We also invite specific individuals or groups to participate and upskill the community’s knowledge and understanding – providing answers to challenges and solutions to local issues.

Our Annual Conference provides you with a weekend of networking and learning. Held annually across the UK, it’s your opportunity to meet with likeminded individuals and share your passion for hospital broadcasting and learn new skills and techniques in our seminars. With special guests often lined up to share their experiences and a trade show full of freebies, it’s a weekend you can’t afford to miss.

Held on the Saturday night of our Annual Conference, the National Hospital Radio Awards showcase the very best talent from our member stations and celebrates the hard work of all volunteers in the sector. This industry-recognised event also allows volunteers and stations to gain excellent publicity, both locally and nationally.

We offer bespoke training and events based on your needs and requirements, often with a special guest speaker from the industry. Another perfect way for you and your volunteers to develop new skills and network with others within the hospital, health and wellbeing broadcast sector.

Our Member Resource centre is full of useful resources available to you. From HBA guidance on a variety of topics to a shared programming guide with hundreds of programmes available to our member stations.

Volunteers of HBA member stations can join our closed Facebook group to share ideas, get advice from the community and network with other volunteers. Our public-facing Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages also feature stories from member stations and news from HBA.

Membership of the Hospital Broadcasting Association is open to any hospital broadcasting organisation in the UK; to any individual who is involved in, or has an interest in, hospital broadcasting; and to any organisation which wishes to support the Association and hospital broadcasting in the UK in general.

We’ve teamed up with the team behind Alexa devices to give our member stations the opportunity to be heard easily via these smart devices.

Listeners simply need to say ‘Alexa, play hospital radio’ and it will play the nearest HBA registered station to the smart speaker location.